In order to understand why it is important to lower cholesterol, it is necessary to first understand what cholesterol is. Cholesterol is a fatlike waxy substance and is produced by the liver. Although cholesterol has purposes and is important to overall health and body function, too much cholesterol in the body has damaging effects.

Cholesterol forms every cell within the body. When the cholesterol level is appropriate, it plays a life-giving role in many functions of the body.

When cholesterol is at a good level it works to build and repair cells, produces hormones such as estrogen and testosterone, and produces bile acids which are proven to aid in the digestion of fat.

With too much cholesterol in the body, though, the levels build up and cause damage by clogging your arteries. This puts you at serious risk for disease such as heart and stroke. In fact, the major cause behind heart attacks and strokes is clogged arteries resulting from high levels of cholesterol.

When you eat saturated foods such as dairy, meat and eggs your cholesterol elevates. On the other hand when you eat foods such as fruits, vegetables, and grains you can maintain optimal health as they do not contain cholesterol.

High cholesterol can be avoided! With a nutritious diet, the 50% of all adult Americans with high cholesterol can regain their health and lower their risk of disease by 2%. This is done simply from reducing cholesterol by 1%.

Cholesterol can be managed for life with success! It is recommended that you visit your physician on a regular basis to keep a keen eye on your levels.

High cholesterol levels can greatly increase the risk of heart disease including potentially fatal heart attacks. Heart disease can be caused by a number of factors but lowering cholesterol can have many positive effects and reduce risk.

High cholesterol causes hardening of the arteries. Blood flow is then reduced to the heart which may result in chest pains or a heart attack.

Lowering the possible causes of hardening or blocking the arteries will help maintain a healthy heart.

For severely high cholesterol it is recommended to seek consultation with a physician for the best course of treatment. Traditionally, this is treated with prescription medication.

However, the majority of people can lower cholesterol naturally without the use of prescription drugs. Natural remedies are abundantly available. With a few changes in eating habits and lifestyle, one can easily lower cholesterol.

Eating foods that are low in fat will help as well as avoiding those with high fat content, especially foods containing trans-fat. Spreads such as butter and margarine have high levels of trans-fat. Packaged foods and frozen foods generally contain high levels also.

Potato chips, crackers, baked goods and fast foods are all types to avoid. Instead concentrate on foods that are low in fat and high in fiber. Foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, and garlic are great to use in your daily diet.

High cholesterol does not really have any recognizable symptoms until it causes more severe damage like reduced artery blood flow or hardening of the arteries. However, it is important to discover if you have a high cholesterol problem before it begins damaging your system.

If you have high cholesterol, it is important to take action to lower it as soon as you can.

You can participate in tests that will tell you if you have high cholesterol or not. These tests assess your total cholesterol levels, including your LDL, or bad cholesterol, your HDL, or good cholesterol, and your triglycerides, which are another type of fat that forms in your blood. If your total cholesterol is higher than 200 mg/dL then you might be on the road to having high cholesterol.

However, if your total cholesterol is 240 mg/dL or higher, you have what is considered a high cholesterol rating. If your HDL, or good cholesterol is lower than 40 mg/dL and your total cholesterol is high, this means that you have too much of the bad cholesterol, or LDL, in your system. It is the combination of the two types of cholesterol that determine if your score is low or high.

If you have high cholesterol, you should see your doctor immediately for help with developing a plan to treat your condition. There are many drugs on the market today that are specially formulated for treating high cholesterol, and many of these drugs have proven highly effective.

If your cholesterol has already reached the high-risk level, you can seek medical attention at once for cholesterol medication.

The numbers of cholesterol levels include the average figures for total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol.

The total cholesterol is HDL cholesterol and LDL cholesterol combined. The ideal level for this is approximately 200mg/dL or less. This is a desirable level and means that you have a relatively small risk of heart attack. But if the level is 200 to 240mg/dL, it is already considered borderline. Any figure higher than 240mg/dL means you are at a high risk for both heart attack and stroke.

Meanwhile, the desirable level for HDL cholesterol level is above 45mg/dL, the HDL borderline is 35 to 45mg/dL, and high risk is below 35mg/dL. For LDL cholesterol, the desirable figure is below 130mg/dL, borderline is 130 to 160mg/dL, and high risk is above 160mg/dL.

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Cholesterol is a fat- like substance (lipid) present in the cell membrane. Our body needs cholesterol to build cell membranes, making hormones, to digest our dietary fat intake and various other very important bodily functions. But there is a dark side to this seemingly helpful substance which affects the lives of millions of people all over the world. Cholesterol travels in the blood in distinct particles containing both lipids and proteins (lipoproteins). When excessive amounts of cholesterol are circulated, they cause damage to the arteries, especially the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart. Cholesterol ridden plaque accumulates in vessel linings leading to a condition called “atherosclerosis”.

Cholesterol - High Cholesterol and Heart Disease

High Cholesterol levels, impedes blood flow to the heart and the heart muscle becomes starved for oxygen causing chest pains (angina). If a blood clot obstructs a coronary artery affected by atherosclerosis, a heart attack (myocardial infarction) is likely to occur often proving to be fatal. Reducing cholesterol levels has become the need of the hour.

Heart disease because of high cholesterol levels, is the major killer in America, far more than road accidents, plane crashes, hurricanes, gang wars combined together .More than 90 million American adults, or 50 percent of the adult population has high blood cholesterol levels, the primary risk factor for heart disease.

Cholesterol catalysts: Good Cholesterol and Bad Cholesterol

Three major classes of lipoproteins are found in the serum of a fasting individual: low density lipoproteins (LDL), high density lipoproteins (HDL), and very low density lipoproteins (VLDL).

LDL Cholesterol:

LDL cholesterol makes up 60-70 per cent of the total serum cholesterol. LDL is the major atherogenic lipoprotein and has been long ago identified as a primary target for cholesterol lowering therapy.

HDL Cholesterol:

HDL cholesterol makes up 20-30 percent of the total serum cholesterol.. Clinical evidence indicates that HDL helps protect against development of atherosclerosis. It is advisable to check your HDL levels from time to time.

VLDL Cholesterol:

The VLDL is triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and contains 10-15 percent of the total serum cholesterol .VLDL are produced by the liver and some VLDL remnants seem to promote atherosclerosis similar to LDL.